Baltimore City Department of Planning e-News - August - 2018

A Message from the Director

This summer, we had over 270 community residents apply to join the inaugural Planning Academy. Over the month of August, numerous staff pitched in to review applications and develop the curriculum. Our first cohort of 30 resident planners will join us on September 12, and we are excited to kick off this new program. We hope that it continues to strengthen the connections between residents and our Agency.

We are also putting the finishing touches on several plans here at Planning. The Baltimore Green Network Plan, several years in the making, will be finalized this Fall. It is scheduled to be presented to Planning Commission for adoption on September 27th. In addition, the Office of Sustainability is working to complete a draft update of the DP3 Plan. Read more about this plan's importance to Baltimore below, and join the public meetings on the plan THIS week. Final revisions to the updated Baltimore Sustainability Plan are also underway, with final approvals anticipated later in the fall.

Enjoy these final weeks of summer, and stay tuned for further progress updates on the Department of Planning's many initiatives.

The 2018 update will address changes in priorities
that have taken place since the plan was created five years ago and will
include the latest science. It will also highlight the most recent
climate-related disasters the city has faced and will feature many new
strategies and actions to help Baltimore continue moving forward with hazard
mitigation and community preparedness.

Community outreach to help inform the
update was conducted through multiple interviews and the creation and
widespread distribution of a survey gauging community perspectives on hazard
risk.

The draft of the 2018 DP3 update will be out for
public comment from August 27 – September 6. To share your comments on the
plan during that time, please visit: www.bmoresustainable.civicomment.org.

There will also be a public meeting on August 29 (this Wednesday!) to discuss the plan. Please join us:

Grants Available for Homeowners Impacted by Flooding

Grants of up to $5,000 are now available to homeowners whose primary residence was damaged or destroyed in Baltimore City by regional flooding events which occurred in May 2018. Households must demonstrate ownership of primary residence, and that the home is used as a permanent, year round dwelling.

Made in Baltimore Selected to Receive Technical Assistance Funds

On August 15, Smart Growth America announced that Baltimore was one of six cities to receive technical assistance for using small-scale manufacturing as a strategy to create economic opportunity.

Small-scale manufacturing includes microbrewers, prosthetics manufacturers, and yarn makers. Developing this sector can help residents access high paying jobs and economic opportunity close to home.

Baltimore's grant was secured through the efforts of the Made in Baltimore initiative, and its Director Andy Cook. In order to provide job opportunities for low-income residents, Baltimore plans to use this opportunity to help three communities build strategies for preserving affordable production space amid rising residential and commercial demand.

The technical assistance is available through a partnership between Smart Growth America, Recast City and through funding from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA).

Fort Worthington Community Garden Up and Running!

During the Fort Worthington INSPIRE planning process,
school and community stakeholders expressed interest in a community garden near
the school, and set their sights on a City-owned, vacant interior lot across
from the school.

Since then, strong leadership by the school and community
organization have turned around the lot, as described by Fort Worthington
teacher Lexi Wung below. The Department of Planning’s INSPIRE program and Office of
Sustainability were happy to contribute by installing a new water line and by
working with the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts to release a call
for an artist to work with the school and organization to help complete the
garden.

According to Lexi Wung, a teacher at Fort Worthington, the Fort
Worthington Community Garden is a collaboration between Fort Worthington
Elementary/Middle School and the Fort Worthington Neighborhood Association.

Working alongside the scholars and staff at Fort
Worthington to make the garden a reality were a multitude of community organizations including: Volunteering Untapped, the Baltimore Tree
Trust, United Community Network, and the Baltimore INSPIRE Program.

There are still raised garden beds available for community
members in the area to plant their own fruits and vegetables! For more
information, to volunteer, or to get involved, please email Lexi Wung at fortworthingtongarden@gmail.com

Meet New Planning and Sustainability Staffers

Over the past few months, we've had three new staff members join us here at the Department of Planning. Please read more about them below:

Bruna Attila is the Coastal Resources Planner for the Baltimore Office of Sustainability:

Where you are from, what brings you to/brought you to Baltimore?

I am originally
from Rio de Janeiro- Brazil, and moved to Baltimore from Virginia in 2008
because my (now) husband lived here. And today, ten years later, I find it hard
to imagine myself living anywhere else.

What do you anticipate working on for Planning and the Office of Sustainability this
year – what project you are most excited to get going?

I anticipate
continuing to work on projects located within the Critical Area of the
Chesapeake Bay, and within floodplain areas of the Critical Area. I am also
excited to work on the update of the Critical Area Management Program guiding
manual for Baltimore City and on the Maritime Master Plan.

Now that we've heard about your current job, what was your first job?

My first job
ever was to assist my father in the operations of his auto body shop. I would
deal with suppliers and clients, order parts for specific projects, pay
invoices, among other administrative tasks. That was a great experience that
taught me about responsibility and organization at a very early age- I was only
14 when I started!

Aubrey Germ is the Climate and Resilience Planner for the Baltimore Office of Sustainability:

Where you are from, what brings you to/brought you to
Baltimore?

I grew up near Cleveland, Ohio (LeBron who?) and managed to
escape the Midwest to attend The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
(Go Heels!) where I received my BS in Environmental Health Sciences. It was my
post-undergrad job with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation that gave me initial
exposure to Baltimore and the amazing Chesapeake. This experience is where my love for the Chesapeake Watershed grew
strong, and, upon leaving to study urban planning at Harvard’s Graduate School
of Design, I vowed to find a way to return. It was fate!

What do you anticipate working on for Planning /
Sustainability this year – what project you are most excited to get going?

As the Climate and Resilience Planner, I’ve been focusing my time on the 2018 Disaster
Preparedness and Planning Project (DP3) update, and will be involved with
DP3 plan management and implementation. I will also be working on updating the
Climate Action Plan, implementing aspects of the Sustainability Plan, and expanding
the Resilience Hub initiative.

What was your first job (now that we know all about your current job)?

My very first job involved starting a neighborhood lawn
mowing service at age 12 to earn money to attend swim camp. I ended up mowing
lawns for three summers and managed to put a good amount of money toward camp
each year (a strategic move by my parents, that’s for sure).

My grandparents lived in
Baltimore and I spent some years in Baltimore during my childhood. I always loved Baltimore and I wanted a job to be near Charm City.

What do you anticipate working on for Planning /
Sustainability this year – what project you are most excited to get going?

I am looking forward to moving
the four Green Network Focus Area pilot projects (Racheal Wilson Memorial Park, Druid Square, Smithson
Park and Harlem Park Inner Blocks), so the residents can see their vision to
become a reality and enjoy beautiful green spaces in their neighborhood.

What was your first job?

Besides waitressing at various
restaurants, my first job out of college was as a Girl Scout District executive
where I worked with Girl Scout leaders in a large area in the Midwest.

Save the Date: Learn about the Capital Improvement Program on September 24:

We will be holding a public
information session on the Capital Improvement Program as we prepare to kick
off the FY2020-2025 planning process. Please reserve September 24, 2018 from
6-8 pm on your calendar for this information session. Visit
our website for more information on the Capital Improvement Program.

Signage Zoning Meeting on August 29:

On August 6, 2018 City Council Bill #18-0272/ Zoning- Sign Regulations was introduced. This is the set of rules that governs signage in Baltimore.

In order to walk interested parties through the proposed legislative changes, the Department of Planning is hosting a public informational meeting which is scheduled for:

Date: August 29, 2018

Time: 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm

Location: 417 E. Fayette Street- 8th Floor

Upcoming Events

9/6 - Planning Commission

The Planning Commission meets regularly each month. All meetings are held in the Phoebe B. Stanton Boardroom of the Department of Planning, located on the 8th floor of 417 East Fayette Street and are open to the public. Live streaming is available.

9/13 - UDAAP

The Urban Design and Architecture Advisory Panel’s role is to provide the Planning Commission and the Department of Planning design review expertise in the areas of urban design, architecture, and landscape design for all proposed master planning efforts and significant development projects with the goal of achieving high quality designs for the planned and built environment of Baltimore City. More information found here.